Board and Committees
DAEE is managed solely with volunteers and partners! We have an Executive Committee, Board of Directors, and a variety of Committees.
DAEE maintains an active Executive Committee, Board of Directors, and various Committees who are responsible for keeping focus on the vision, mission, plan, and goals and keeping them current and responsive to the needs of environmental education in Delaware.
Executive Committee
DAEE is led by an Executive Committee, elected to one to two-year terms, comprised of individuals from our Board of Directors.
Our current Executive Committee
- Chair: Todd Klawinski, Caesar Rodney School District
- Vice-Chair: David Pragoff, Delaware Nature Society
- Secretary: Claire Mickletz, DNREC -Delaware State Parks
- Co-Secretary: Kara Okonewski, Mispillion Art League
- Treasurer: Stacey Georgov, Delaware Solid Waste Authority
- NAEE Liaison: Maureen Larkin, Environmental Educator
- Member at Large: Ashley Melvin, Delaware Forest Service
Thank you to our outgoing Executive Committee members!
Board of Directors
DAEE is governed by a Board of 10-20 Directors. Our DAEE Board is comprised of a diverse group involved with informal and formal environmental education and related fields.
The membership of the Board of Directors is approved at our Annual Conference in late winter/early spring each year. Look for a call for applications to the board starting a few months before the next annual conference. Please consider getting involved! We’re always looking for new faces, ideas, and perspectives.
Our current Board of Directors
- Angel Burns, DNREC – Delaware State Parks
- Brian Marsh, US Fish & Wildlife Service – Delaware Bay Coastal Program
- David Christopher, University of Delaware – Delaware Sea Grant
- Lisa Watt, DNREC – Delaware State Parks
- Cheryl Jackson, W.L. Gore & Associates
- Kerry Wilson, Delaware Nature Society
- Katie Pollock, University of Delaware – The Lab School
- Lisa Swanger, Delaware Center for the Inland Bays
- Jen Cippola, Healthy Foods for Healthy Kids
- Brigid Gregory, Plastic Free Delaware
- Karen Igou, Green Building United
- Tessa Charney, DNREC – Delaware State Parks
- Sonia Saunders, Brandywine Springs School
- Laurel Sullivan – DNREC – Delaware National Estuarine Research Reserve
- Leah Brooks, Mt. Cuba Center
Committees
Most of the work that DAEE does gets done through a variety of standing or ad hoc committees.
You do not need to be a Board member to be part of one of our committees and we welcome you joining. Please contact us at DAEEonline@gmail.com if you may be interested in participating on one of them.
The following committees are an important way that we accomplish our mission.
Our Current Committees
- Justice Equity Diversity Inclusion and Accessibility Committee (JEDIA) – Works to ensure environmental education and meaningful experiences with nature are accessible to everyone.
- Marketing & Media Committee – Maximizes our organization’s marketing strategy and communications including the newsletter, website, and social media.
- Communities in Nature– Works to engage communities and promote environmental
and outdoor education to facilitate positive impacts. - Outdoor Learning Network– Works to coordinate a unified voice for outdoor
learning. Helps to schedule tours and gather resources. - Events (non-conference) & Program Planning Committee – Plans and implements non-conference DAEE events (behind-the-scenes tours, paddling trips, etc.), and professional development workshops.
- Membership Committee – Determines how to attract, retain, and best serve our members.
- Conference Committee – Plans and implements the annual DAEE conference.
- Finance Committee – As a 501(c)(3) organization, bookkeeping is of utmost importance. This committee ensures the fiscal responsibility and well-being of DAEE.
- Strategic Plan Committee – Ensures DAEE is working toward its current strategic plan, and updates the document as needed, during its life.
- Budget Committee – Helps DAEE grow as an organization by creating monthly, annual, and multi-year budgets.
- Audit Committee – Works with an external auditor to ensure DAEE has proper financial reporting and disclosure.
- Awards for Excellence Committee – Determines winners of DAEE’s annual Awards for Excellence.